PSB Image T6 fuzzy sound

Hello limo. Thanks for the reply. From what I am able to tell, the thread is just a few days old. In fact, I was in the process of finding the second markers in the tracks to continue the discussion There are quite a few. I hope to have a proper reply tomorrow. Have you stumbled on another thread that addresses the same issue? If so, feel free to point me in the right direction.

Thanks again
Kevin

Thanks Limo! I will look into the cables next.

Kevin

Hello Okeeteekid. Thank you for taking the time to go through the listening exercise. The reply is much appreciated. You may be onto something with the bad recording idea. After B_Limo's response regarding the cables as a possible culprit, I swapped out the pair running out of the OPPO that went into the CD inputs of the Arcam for a different set (same model, same manufacturer). I heard the same thing, which leads me to think that the bad sound isn’t coming from that cable itself. I have a 99 cent pair that I am looking to try later today to see how the sound changes. I am not expecting much, but for a buck, it has some entertainment value. The only drawback is, my wife is getting pretty tired of Norah Jones.

During the process, I started to wonder if it was that particular set of RCA jacks on the Arcam, so I used an auxililary set instead. I got the same results. I guess if there is anything positive to come out of it, I am happy to know that the Arcam is consistent.

Being even more curious, I next decided to bypass the analog output from the Oppo and use the optical output instead. The bad hissing sound was not there. Unfortunately, some of the other resolution also went with it as I suspect the DAC in the Arcam is no where near as capable as that of the Oppo. I’ll have to spend some more time listening to determine what’s been improved and what’s be degraded. That’s all part of the maddness that makes this hobby fun right?

In terms of the Norah Jones recording, the thought of it being a bad recording never really occurred to me. For as long as I’ve been dabbling in this hobby (on and off since 2002), I’ve always thought it was a great recording. Thank you for giving me the new perspective. On my previous system which I thought was superior component wise (Meadowlark Ospreys, Bryston BP-20, Bryston 4bst, Arcam cd72) to my current setup, I never recalled the sound being so apalling. That system is still in the “family” so one day I think I’m going to take the Oppo over and see if the hiss is there. Should be fun.

Thanks again,
Kevin

Thanks Okeeteekid. I've heard magnepans are super revealing. I think I may have stumbled on the source of the problem. Last night I spent some time listening to Pandora through the Oppo. I heard the same high frequency fuzz. I started to think a bit and decided to poke around the "audio processing" features that come with the Oppo. It turns out that the factory settings have some dB adjustments that come with the player out of the box. There is a feature that lets you fine tune these for movies. Taking a stab in the dark, I set the levels to 0. After playing the Norah Jones CD with these new settings, the fuzz was taken away. Looking back, it turns out the Oppo is a really "smart" player. To "smart" for someone like me =).

Thanks again everyone,
Kevin

Indeed... for music I do miss the old system. I only had a few knobs, balance, input selector and a volume control.

Nice rig. I like the components you selected as they are also on the top of my list for best "bang for the buck". If I had my druthers, I'd probably end up with the same components. Although, I can't say I know much about Paradigm's. I have always been tempted by the great value Classe components provide on the second hand Audiogon market. I think if I get the upgrade bug, I'll have to go down that route. The VDAC caught my eye as well. I am thinking either that one of the Music Hall 15.2. How do you like the IPOD/IPHONE as the portal to Pandora? Do you think it is any better than using a network enabled blu-ray or TV?

Thanks
Kevin

Hi B_limo,

Thanks for the info. I didn't know what "Spotify" meant until your last post. At first I thought it was a new-fangled verb related to doing something with digital music. After poking around the web, I find that it's a service... one that I actually might be interested in. I'll have to look into it a bit more. Interesting what one can learn by asking seemingly unrelated questions. I've been living under a rock for the past 10 years!

Thanks again,
Kevin

Hello B_limo,

If I may ask, what convinced you that the sound wasn't indicative of a blown tweeter? Although I did a comparison with my T5's, part of me still can't shake the idea that the tweeters are blown. It really just doesn't sound right. It may just be a matter of adjusting my expectations. I bought these with the intention for home theater.

Anyhow, here are few of the tracks and times that I noticed the high "fuzz" on. I hope you have access to some of the same CDs.

Artist Norah Jones, Album "Come Away With Me"
Track 1 "Don't Know Why"
0:10 through 0:13
0:22
0:38
0:50
1:00 through 1:04
1:10 through 1:18
Track 2 "Seven Years"
0:15
0:30
0:40
Track 3 "Cold Cold Heart"
0:23
0:40
1:07
1:10
1:22 through 1:24
1:47
2:00 through 2:11 (the whole piano part has this fuzzy hiss to it)

Artist The XX, Album "Coexist"
Track 9 "Unfold"
0:40
1:00

Artist Diana Krall, Album Live in Paris
Track 4 "The Look of Love"
0:49 through 0:51
1:22 (the "Long I've waited" part really brings out the hiss)

Artist Bic Runga, Album Drive
Track 1 "Drive"
0:41 through 0:43 (pay particular attention when she sings the word "know")
1:05 (notice the sound of the singing "feeling I guess")

Artist Coldplay, Album Parachutes
Track 1 "Don't Panic"
The chorus "we live in a beautiful world" brings out the hiss
1:20 through 1:23 (the piano part is pretty bad sounding)
1:50 through 1:54
Track 6 "Trouble"
0:40

Thanks again,
Kevin

I share your sentiment. Sometimes ignorance can be bliss. I have a feeling if I had a dedicated CD player, I would not hear as much "hissing" on the upper end. A lot of this thought is attributed to my belief that there are just fewer settings the user can mess with. I think my next purchase may be a DAC as I have a hard time convincing myself that CD players are still the way to go. I really liked my Arcam CD72. But given that its a bit dated, I can't help but think the new DACs on the market are inferior in capability. In addition, I really like the versatility of being able to plug in different digital inputs. As I am only looking to spend $400 (which is what I paid for the used CD72 back in 2002) I just have this feeling that $400 can buy so much more today (I hope). Anyhow, on with the madness.

Oh, what components are you using now?

Thanks
Kevin